Brazil announced it will hold a bidding process for uncontracted pre-salt oil reserves on December 4. 

On offer will be the entire stake of state-owned firm Pré-Sal Petróleo (PPSA) in the shared deposits of the Mero, Tupi and Atapu fields. PPSA represents the government in production-sharing agreements.

The three fields are operated by state-run oil giant Petrobras with global companies as partners – Shell, TotalEnergies, CNODC, CNOOC and Galp. PPSA’s interests in Mero, Tupi and Atapu are 3.5%, 0.5% and 0.9%, respectively. 

The bidding process is supported by a law published this year (No. 15,164/2025), which authorizes the government to dispose of rights and obligations arising from agreements for the individualization of production in areas not granted or not shared in the pre-salt area region and in strategic areas.

“We’re offering the market world-class assets located in the heart of the Brazilian pre-salt layer, one of the most productive oil provinces in the world. This is a rare opportunity: all fields are in operation, with highly productive wells and significant reserves. We’ll certainly attract investors looking for high-performance assets in operation, with proven fundamentals and growth potential,” PPSA CEO Luis Fernando Parol said in a release. 

The auction comes as the government strives to raise extra revenue amid pressure to balance public finances. 

A local lawyer told BNamericas on condition of anonymity that the strategy makes sense. 

“With this, the government is relieving PPSA of the burden of having to bid on these barrels in the future. It’s more efficient, as the public administration no longer has to hold auctions,” the source said.

That does not mean that PPSA will adopt the same strategy for the other production-sharing assets in its portfolio. 

“This is a specific bidding process. You can’t conclude that there is a trend,” another source familiar with the matter told BNamericas.

In 2025, PPSA carried out one auction, raising US$5bn from the sale of oil from the Búzios, Sépia and Itapu fields, in addition to spot oil sales from Itapu and Atapu in March and August. 

Meanwhile, PPSA is negotiating access to Petrobras’ gas pipelines and processing units in order to hold its first gas auctions.